Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy: A Timeline of Their Relationship

A desperate housewife and a Shameless dad! Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy’s romance has stood the test of time amid personal struggles and triumphs.

The couple married more than 20 years ago after dating on and off for 15 years. They are also the parents of daughters Sophia and Georgia.

The Shameless star and the Desperate Housewives alum have often gushed about their relationship and family life. “What’s the secret? I don’t think there is a secret,” Macy told Us Weekly of his marriage in September 2017. “But mostly, I’m lucky. I met her, she said yes, we grew up in the theater together, we have shared interests, and she’s a good woman to her core and evolving always. And no one has ever seen me the way she sees me.”

The actors even work well together. “Don’t try this at home, kids. This is not a good idea,” he said. “We talk the talk and walk the walk. I read her scripts, she reads mine, we give each other notes, we run lines with each other, we’re in it. It’s dangerous territory, but if you’re married well, you can get through it.”

Huffman echoed her husband’s statements when she caught up with Us in April 2018. “I lucked out, I married Bill Macy,” she admitted. “But that’s as far as I can go. I don’t know how you make marriage work, I just got lucky. I have no idea.”

The Fargo star stayed by his wife’s side when she was arrested in March 2019 for her alleged involvement in a college admissions scam. “To all the moms out there, you’re all superheroes and you’re all good enough,” the actress wrote via Instagram days before the scandal broke. “Don’t let anyone tell you differently.”

Scroll to relive Macy and Huffman’s decades-long relationship.

1980s

The Oscar nominees met at the Atlantic Theater Company in New York City in the early 1980s. They proceeded to date on and off for 15 years.

Credit: Jim Smeal/WireImage

1980s – 1990s

Macy proposed to Huffman “several times over several years,” according to the American Crime alum. However, she rejected him. “I was so scared of marriage that I thought I would’ve preferred to step in front of a bus,” the actress told Tribune News Opens a New Window. in February 2015.

Credit: Jim Smeal/WireImage)

1990s

The pair called it quits at one point during their courtship and stayed apart for “four or five years,” Huffman revealed to Tribune News.

Credit: Jim Smeal/WireImage

September 1997

Macy popped the question again after the duo’s lengthy breakup. “I was finally smart enough to go, ‘I’m going to marry this guy or really lose him for good.’ … I knew I couldn’t say no,” she confessed to Tribune News. “It was the work I had to do in order to bring myself to the marriage and then the work that I did to be able to trust another person and see what comes out of that comfort and that safety. I was able to blossom out of that.” The twosome tied the knot on September 6, 1997.

Credit: Russ Einhorn/Liaison Agency

2000s

Macy and Huffman added to their brood when they welcomed daughters Sophia on August 1, 2000, and Georgia on March 14, 2002. The Emmy winner told Us in March 2019 that their parenting approaches are “really complimentary.”